March SI, 1*89. J 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
233 
two or three eyes according to their strength, leaving them longer where 
they are required to fill vacancies. If the bushes are allowed to extend 
gradually in this way they make more compact and better shaped plants 
than when left longer at each pruning, and in many cases produce quite 
as many flowers. Many advocate pruning Teas but little, and in some 
cases when planted in the open air when late spring frosts work sad 
havoc amongst them, and when flowers of good substance are not of so 
much importance as large quantities of medium sized ones the plan 
may answer very well, and also in cases where plants are trained to the- 
•roof of greenhouses and conservatories where there is plenty of room 
for extension. The removal of a few weak growths may be all that is 
necessary then till the allotted space is covered, but when grown in pol s 
•in the form of bushes it is the reverse of good practice to leave numbers 
•of small shoots struggling with each other and gradually getting weaker 
•till they are entirely at the mercy of a few strong growths that spring up 
here and there, and in time convert into a misshapen bush what was 
■once a symmetrical and evenly balanced specimen. 
If pruned in a similar way to Hybrid Rerpetuals, leaving the weakest 
shoots that are retained a little longer than the stronger ones, and timely 
attention is given to stopping strong growths in the summer time, even, 
well balanced bushes capable of yielding numbers of fine flowers will 
be the result. After pruning, the soil should be removed down to where 
the roots are plentiful, and a top-dressing given consisting of two parts 
fibry loam and two of horse droppings, with a little lime rubble added, 
the whole being firmly rammed. They should then be placed in a house 
where they can be brought on gradually with the aid of a little fire 
Sieat in severe weather, closing early on bright afternoons, and giving 
•the plants a good syringing at the same time. Continue this 
practice till the flower buds begin to unfold, when they should be 
removed to the conservatory, or the syringing discontinued. After flower¬ 
ing the Teas should be kept under glass till all danger from frost is over, 
while the other sections will be safe in a sheltered position out of doors. 
About the end of May the whole stock should be looked over, and those 
that require it repotted in a compost of two parts fibry loam, one of 
•horse droppings, and a little lime rubble, ramming each layer of soil 
-firmly as the potting proceeds. Those already in pots as large as it is 
•convenient to have them can be kept in a healthy vigorous state for 
years if they are well fed with liquid manure and other stimulants, an 
-occasional sprinkling of Clay’s fertiliser or Beeson’s manure being 
beneficial, bringing out the rich colours of the flowers. 
Those that have been potted should be kept well syringed for a week 
•or ten days, after which the whole stock can be plunged to the rim of 
the pots in ashes in an open situation. When plunging care should be 
"taken to keep the newly potted ones in a batch by themselves, so that 
those that have not been disturbed at the roots can have frequent ap¬ 
plications of liquid manure from the time they are plunged till the end 
•of August, while those newly potted will not require it till the roots 
have pushed well into the fresh soil. During the summer months the 
•cultural requirements necessary are to keep them supplied with 
water at the roots whenever they require it. Syringe thoroughly 
•during the afternoons of bright days, stop young shoots that appear 
likely to rob their neighbours, keep the flower buds picked off and 
the pots free from weeds, and should green fly put in an appearance 
•syringe with a strong solution of soapy water. 
To maintain a supply of flowers during the autumn months select 
•some of the strongest plants of such varieties as Safrano, Niphetos, 
and Catherine Mermet, which by the end of August will be found push¬ 
ing up a number of young shoots. If these are placed in a moderately 
warm house, and kept well attended to, they will yield good blooms 
•during October and November. Towards the end of October a few 
more may be pruned and brought on gradually to succeed them, the 
•three varieties named and Celine Forestier being among the very best 
for the purpose. Should mildew become troublesome the affected parts 
•should be dusted with flowers of sulphur, or in bad cases an effectual 
remedy is to paint the pipes with sulphur, keep the house close for one 
■night, and heat the hot-water pipes till the fumes from the sulphur 
smell strongly when entering the house. The following varieties »uc- 
•ceed admirably in pots :—Alfred Colomb, Baronne de Rothschild, Charles 
Lefebvre, Duke of Edinburgh, Dupuy Jamain, Fisher Holmes, General 
■Jacqueminot, La France, Louis Van Houtte, Paul Neyron, Senateur 
Vaisse ; Tea-scented—Devoniensis, Madame Falcot, Grace Darling, 
Niphetos, Souvenir d’un Ami, Perle d’Or, Madame Cusin, and Perle des 
-Jardins.—H. DuMnN. 
JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES. 
The full value of these Artichokes for rendering thin soups thicker, 
^nd insipid broths more palatable, has not yet become fully recognised. 
It is not as affording a substitute for Potatoes, but as an adjunct to 
•them that they are recommended, and a few should be planted in many 
•more gardens than is the case at present. They are by no means dainty 
as to soil, and are productive ; their tops also in some places being 
•useful, for horses and cattle will eat them greedily ; but what animals 
wid eat Potato haulm? The tubers of Artichokes are also liked by 
most animals, and they are relished by and are beneficial to poultry. 
Than Jerusalem Artichokes no crop is more easily cultivated. Rich 
soil is not necessary, neither is deep trenching ; in fact, good crops are 
.produced on comparatively poor and hard soil. If the ground is very 
-deep and rich, luxuriant tops are produced and large unshapely tubers, 
while poorer and firmer soil is promotive of smoother and more useful 
•tubers. 
A common mistake is made in planting too closely. Jerusalem 
Artichokes never yield so well as when planted in a single row, and in 
this way they are often useful in forming a screen—hiding something 
which is best out of sight—during the summer months. There are not 
many gardens where a row of them is not only admissible, but where 
their appearance would be an advantage. Look out for such places, 
and plant in single rows if you desire the greatest yield. If it is 
necessary to grow in plots of several rows, the sets should not be less 
than 3 feet apart; in a single row the tubers may be a foot apart. Now 
is the time for planting, covering the tubers 3 or 4 inches deep. In the 
cultivation of this crop there is no fear of injury resulting by frost or 
any disease. It is a poor man’s and a rich man’s vegetable—a crop, in 
fact, for everybody who has room for growing it.—W. A. 
IRIS ROSENBACHIANA. 
A dwarf early flowering Iris, only a few inches high, and conse¬ 
quently well adapted for culture in pots, though it is said to be quite 
hardy. The flowers are slightly larger than I. reticulata, the petaloid 
stigmas and “standards” mauve, the “falls” each having a bright 
central orange ridge, and are tipped with deep purple. The flowers 
vary greatly in colour, however, as some are very pale, and in others quite 
a dark bluish purp’e hue runs through the whole flower. Seedlings of 
most Irises present similar variations in colours without artificial cross¬ 
ing having been effected. At the last meeting of the Royal Horticul¬ 
tural Society certificates were accorded for Iris Rosenbachiana to Mr. J. 
Douglas, Great Gearies Gardens, Ilford, and Messrs. Barr & Son, 
Covent Garden, the latter having a much darker variety than that 
from Ilford. 
SHOW AND FANCY DAHLIAS AT THE 
NATIONAL DAHLIA SHOWS. 
The number of Show Dahlias staged last year at the Crystal 
Palace was greater than at any previous National Dahlia exhibition ; 
but the Fancies, on the other hand, were again but indifferently 
represented ; indeed, we have to go back to 1883 in order to find as 
